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As the holiday season nears, both email inboxes and physical mail boxes start to fill up with giving requests from a multitude of charities. Many well-founded charities are legitimately run and purposefully directed. But, much like email scams, Craigslist mishaps and other high-profile misadventures, it's the few charities that traffic in fraud and bogus work that make the headlines.

Charity fraud is a deceitful ruse used by con men and criminals to obtain money from people who are led to believe they're making a charitable donation that will help some individual, cause or group. It involves businesses accepting donations and not using the money for its intended purposes. These non-existent charities are usually given the sheen of a website, pamphlets and other presentation materials to lure contributions from unsuspecting givers.

After the 9/11 terrorist attacks, several fake charities were caught seeking funds for families of policemen and firefighters killed in the line of duty. One example included a man who took in about $440,000 in donations from businesses and individuals in 2000 and 2001, but only paid out about 5 percent of the funds to the killed officers' families. The man was later arrested and sentenced to eight years in prison for his role in running the bogus Police Survivor's Fund.

Because of the seasonal re-occurrence of charity giving every holiday season, people are suggested to be wary of unknown charities seeking money. The FTC's guidelines on charity fraud offer assistance to individuals to be alert to fake charity requests. The commission recommends taking time to become familiar with all aspects of the charity before committing yourself. If the charity turns out to be bogus, there isn't only the loss of money, but there's also a chance for theft of your online identity, as well. Below are sensible tips for charity givers.

Avoid Giving Out Personal Information

Bogus charities will often try to pry personal information from you during a soliciting phone call. If you slip and give away a checking account number or social security number, you may want to immediately engage an identity theft monitoring service like Lifelock or a similar service to help you to maintain control of your accounts online, if the bogus charity's actions turns criminal.

Be Proactive in Charity Giving

Committed donation givers usually have a few respected charities with which they work. Scams and frauds involving charities are usually the case of people reacting to a written plea, a video, an email or a phone call seeking funds. If you know what the extent of your contributions can be, set them up during the year and don't overreact to a potential con charity during the holiday season.

Research the Charity

Find out the charity's website, contact info, head of staff and other contact info. Learn how the charity's programs work, how it raises funds and how much of your contribution will go to operational costs or to the intended recipients of the charity. You can also check the history of the charity with state offices that oversee charities.

Confirm Non-Profit Status

Don't feel guilty this holiday season when you don't drop cash into canisters at store checkout counters, or avoid dropping a few dollars into solicitors' buckets outside the supermarket. Scam artists generally take advantage of these situations and rob you of your goodwill. Be a smart donor instead. Smart givers support charities and organizations that have a tax-exempt status known as section 501(c) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code. You can search for tax-exempt charities at the IRS app for search.

Authored by: Timothy Jenkins. Tim is a blogger who writes about money and investing. He is a wealth manager who lives in the Phoenix area.

When money is needed for a good cause, people often pool their resources and come together to raise money through various types of fundraising. I remember reading about a young girl who fell off the side of the cliff at a family event and was severely injured. Due to the fall, she underwent extensive surgeries and her medical bills were costing more than her family could afford. To help relieve some of the financial stress; friends, family members and local businesses got together and hosted a fundraiser with a silent auction to help raise money for her medical bills. This is just one reason people may decide to fund raise. Other reasons fundraising takes place is to raise money for: various charities, medical research, school events and for humanitarian volunteers and trips. If you are looking to raise money for a good cause and are interested in fundraising, learn about the various options available for doing so.

Spread the Word

When you are really in a jam and need to raise money on the fly, sometimes it is most efficient to just ask or request donations. If specifically looking for monetary donations, it may be beneficial to contact people you know are interested in the cause you are representing. You can spread awareness of your fundraising efforts through word of mouth, email, direct mail or through social media.

Sell Products

The most traditional or at least, the most common method for fundraising is to sell products. Having started with the Girl Scouts and their cookies, products for fundraising have grown into encompassing many aspects of retail including kitchen gadgets, wrapping paper, stationary, edible items (coffee, cookie dough, pizza ,gourmet foods) and magazine subscriptions.

Auctions

This is a popular method for fundraising and may include a live, silent or online auction. Auctions can be hosted as just that, with the auction being the main attraction or, it can be included as part of a larger event such as a dinner or gala. In addition to charging for dinner tickets, auctions tend to bring in quite a bit of money. In addition to a live or silent auction, you can also integrate an online component so even those that are unable to attend the event, can bid on the items up for auction.

Raffles

Raffle tickets can be sold to raise additional money at various events. They can also be sold for big ticket items such as a motorcycle or car but that is only if proper advertising space is available. If doing this, you would want to set up in an area such as a mall or boardwalk where hundreds of people walk by each day.

Events

Small Events

For smaller scaled fundraising efforts, small events may be perfect. This might include a dinner or get together for up to fifty people with relaxed themes such as Parent/children dance nights, trivia nights, family fun and art walks. A more formal event may be hosted at a well-known establishment and offer a wine tasting or maybe a gourmet dinner.

Large Events

Big, over-the-top events that are designed to rake in the dough may include dinner dances, galas, 5k runs and golf tournaments. For those looking to plan a large fundraising event, it may be a good idea to contact an event coordinator to assist. In hiring an experienced event planner to help host your large fundraising event, you will have assistance with budgeting and meeting all of your needs. In working with someone that has experience and that knows the ins and outs of the business, you will be able to host a more elaborate event and ultimately, raise more money for your charity.

Article is written by author, Sarah Smith and information is brought to you on behalf of Kaleidoscope Solutions in Philadelphia, PA.

How To Raise Money For Your Organisation With A Race Night

A race night is a fantastic way to raise funds for your club, charity, school, PTA or whatever your organisation is. To make your event as successful as it can be, there are a few things that you need to do. These depend upon your objectives but most are run for fundraising and are set up to raise as much money as possible. Some are run as fundraisers mainly for entertainment and with the objective of covering the costs of the event plus expenses; some to raise money for a local good cause or charity in pubs whilst encouraging bar takings and some mainly for entertainment or to raise money for a chosen charity at corporate events and functions.

There are several vital tasks to be conducted even before the event begins. You will need to appoint a promotions manager who is responsible for putting up posters and speaking with local companies to arrange prizes and sponsorship for the event; an event manager who is responsible for booking the venue, an auctioneer (or possibly a Master of Ceremonies -MC) and a projector. Should you choose to use an events company where they provide a DVD or video as part of the package, the MC is not really necessary.

Normally one of the local characters in the organisation will volunteer for this aspect of the race night. The right character will entice the audience to raise their bids and this can make a big difference to the funds raised on the night. Sometimes more money is raised in the auction race- which is traditionally the last race- than in all of the other races put together. This is often assisted by the presence of a bar serving alcoholic beverages. The amount of funds raised in the auction can also be substantially increased by asking the audience to pool resources and bid by table rather than individually- this also increases the social aspect of the event.

Should you wish to seek external help running your fundraiser, there are a multitude of events companies specialising in charity and fundraising events. Fundeo is a Scotland based company that specialises in fun and fundraising video and DVD products to help run a successful fundraiser.

Their website has tips to describe how to maximise your income and the funds raised. There is even a step-by-step course demonstrating how to run an event and raise money using either real money for betting, or using fun money for the betting.

Anyone who has kids at school or is involved with any sort of charity group will know that there is a constant stream of demands for items to use as raffle prizes or to sell to raise funds for the group. Schools are charities are finding their funds ever squeezed in the current economic climate, so it is important to know what sells well and what takes minimum effort to produce.

Baking

Bake sales are an eternal favourite as a way of raising funds but the thought of baking from scratch strikes fear into the heart of many. Baking for a bake sale doesn’t have to be complex as often the best sellers are the simpler types of products like scones, fairy cakes or chocolate crispie cakes. If baking for a school, get the kids involved in the preparation of the cakes, but make sure they don’t eat all of the profits at the same time. Presentation makes a huge difference as to how well the items sell, so take time to put your finished items into little plastic presentation bags and secure them with colourful ribbon or string. Whatever you choose to make for selling, avoid nuts as many schools have strict nut free policies to cater for children will allergies.

Handcrafts

If you’re crafty, knitting, crocheting or sewing items to sell can be a great money spinner. Smaller items like scarves or gloves sell better than larger sweaters or blankets, and can be made relatively quickly too. Try using fancy yarns such as the Rico Can Can yarn which knits up into a frilled, professional-looking finish. Consider asking local yarn shops if they are prepared to part with odd balls of Rico Can Can or other similar yarns which will be used to raise funds for local charities as this can cut the cost of making the items.

Toys, Books or Games

News that the school is holding a sale is music to the ears of many parents as it gives the opportunity to have a clear out of junk. Only donate items which you would be prepared to buy yourself, so make sure all jigsaws are complete, books don’t have ripped pages and that the instructions are with the games before handing them in. Get your children involved in deciding what to donate, with the promise that they can buy something with their pocket money when the sale comes around.

Clothing

More and more groups are adding good quality, second hand clothing into their fundraising efforts, and the key to making money from this is correct pricing. Rather than having a policy of charging a flat fee for everything, stagger prices so that you are charging considerably more for a Monsoon party dress, and less for a t-shirt from a supermarket’s range. Have somewhere set up so that parents can try clothing on their children and if the fundraising is for a school, have a separate section for second hand items of school uniform such as blazers, sweatshirts and jackets.

You can look fabulous, feel good and help others all in one go. It is all thanks to the different chariity projects that have been launched within the beauty and wellness industry, raising hundreds of millions of dollars for non-profits and humanitarian efforts of all kinds. Usually with the help of big brands and celebrities that are dedicated to the same cause you are.

These four websites offer you ways to help give back, doing what you would normally do. Who doesn't love that?

Based on lifecell-anti-aging.com, since their 2005 launch, Charity Buzz has raised millions...$60 million, actually. They are a bidding site that allows their bidders to 'live their dreams' while giving to more than 1000 different non-profits that are desperate for support. Get a vacation at a spa for a fraction of the usual price, meet the celebrity you love or get your hair done at an exclusive salon you could never otherwise afford. The proceeds all go to charity.

Skincare brand Ling has supported several charities in the past, such as building houses in both Vietnam and Louisiana. Both are ongoing efforts, though their primary charity project now is with Charity: Water, where proceeds from sales have already helped to build four wells in Africa. Every time you buy from Ling, you are helping them to continue supporting humanitarian aid in all three regions.

Beverly Hills based Young Essential Skincare (Y.E.S.) has dedicated themselves to two different non-profits. The first is the Wounded Warrior Project, which gives money to the care of those who served our country and were injured in the process. The second is to Angel Face Retreats, which supports the treatment of face disfiguring scars caused by fire. According to genf20plus.com, Wounded Warriors is funded through books sales, which Angel Face is funded through product sales.

Everyone deserves the chance for success, and the ability to feel confident in their own appearance. Project Lipstick travels to women's shelters across the US and gives them full makeovers. Not only does this improve their self esteem during a time they most need it, but it assists them in finding job opportunities. They also provide various clothing drives, which can be found through their website.

Do you know of any beauty-related charities that you would like to share with us? Let us know in the comments.

Charitable giving in the form of cash and property donations is a favorite pastime of people living in first world countries, with millions of offerings being made each year to thousands of foundations representing different causes. For those who are covered by a life insurance policy, the ability to give to worthy causes extends even after death thanks to the many ways that charitable foundations can become a partial beneficiary of an insurance policy.

If you’d like your passing to be marked by bringing a smile to the face of someone else in need, read on to learn more about using life insurance for charitable giving:

1. Policy Donations

Because it also has the ability to reduce the taxable estate of the donor, a policy donation is one of the most popular choices when it comes to charitable giving via life insurance. A policy donation also offers the benefit of yielding a current income tax deduction of the policy’s fair market value, often providing a significant savings for the donor’s estate.

From the charity’s point of view, a policy donation is the most beneficial. The charitable recipient will receive the entire face value of the the policy when the donor passes away, with the premiums paid by the donor representing only a very small fraction of the total amount received; any premiums paid after the date of the gift are also deductible.

Finally, because charitable foundations have no ceiling when it comes to estate tax, there is also no ceiling on the size of a donated policy.

2. Naming a Charity as a Beneficiary

If you’re looking for a quick and simple method of leaving a piece of your life insurance policy to a charitable foundation, consider naming a charity of your choosing as a single beneficiary of your policy. While easier to set up, this form of giving does not offer the tax benefits available with policy donations and the donor’s estate is reduced by the amount of the death benefit.

An additional benefit of naming a charity as a beneficiary is that your donation will remain completely anonymous, a useful feature when keeping the details of your estate and policy private is important to you.

3. Gifting Policy Dividends

While gifting the dividends of your life insurance policy cannot offer the same potential windfall to the charity as can using the methods above, it is possible to easily setup your policy to direct the dividends paid to your life insurance policy directly to a charity. This method requires no additional monetary outlay from the donating party, making it particularly useful to corporate entities looking to reduce taxes while giving back to their communities.

4. Charitable Giving Riders

An option only presented in modern life insurance policies over the past few years, charitable giving riders offer a simple way for a policyholder to leave the additional payout of their policy to charity. This type of rider can be attached to any life insurance policy with a face value of $1 million or more, paying out an additional 1-2.5 percent of that value to a charity of your choice.

Typically offered by life insurance companies at no extra cost and not affecting the premium or cash value of the death benefit to the beneficiaries, a charitable giving rider is quickly becoming one of the most popular options for giving to charity through life insurance policies.

Conclusion

Charitable giving is a wonderful act of kindness, no matter the platform used to deliver it, and the increasingly easy to implement options offered by insurance companies are making it more and more simple for anyone to leave a positive legacy associated with their estate. With the number of options available and the potential impact on the value of the policy used minimal or even non-existent, every life insurance policyholder can consider allowing a charity to benefit from their estate.

Charities need fundraisers for a variety of reasons. A fundraising event is one of the most important ways to create attention for a charity, and can also help to generate engagement with a local community. Moreover, charity fundraisers help to enlist new people for Charity Jobs, as well as developing links with local businesses. Moreover, charity fundraisers can help to create specific fundraising drives, as well as establishing long term targets for an organisation to hit. The importance of fundraisers for charities is expanded on below:

1 - Attention

A major event, or even a smaller local one, will create a lot of attention for a charity. If properly marketed, an event can help to bring attention to the work of the charity, and will create a lasting profile, even if people do not initially donate. Local events are particularly useful for smaller charities that don’t have the marketing budget of larger organisations. A few memorable events can become a tradition for the charity, and will help to support a range of other mail outs and fundraising drives.

2 - Local Engagement

A well organised fundraising event represents an excellent way to engage with a local community. An event that involves that community will also help to build an identity for a charity within the area, and can encourage people to use that charity as a future partner for their own fundraising events. Getting a charity involved in local schools and businesses is similarly important for raising awareness, and for increasing the potential for future collaborations.

3 - Enlist New People

A well attended fundraising event can bring in a number of volunteers. These volunteers might then decide to stay on at the charity in a voluntary or a future professional role. Having an event at a school, college or university can also help to build loyalty to a charity at a young age, and can spin off a number of individual fundraising activities.

4 - Specific Fundraising Drives

A special event can work to bring attention to a specific cause. The focus of an event can therefore make it easier to demonstrate where the money is going to be used, and how individual donations will contribute to that effort. In this context, it is important for an event to be tailored to a specific cause, from a walk to raise funds to tackle breast cancer, through to a charity music night set up to help cancer sufferers. Although a direct identification does not have to be necessarily made, the event can be made more memorable by using badges and logos that identify the particular cause and who it will be helping.

5 - Sets a Standard to Hit

Successful fundraising events ultimately establish a standard by which a charity can be measured. In many cases, a public fundraising event can be years in development, and can provide a charity with a much larger amount of income than everyday fundraising. Being able to assess and meet these targets consequently means being able to work out an annual schedule for major events that can push fundraising targets over a certain limit.

Top 6 sunglasses brands which donate to charity

Clear vision is often something we take for granted due to our easy access to medication, prescription eyewear and professional treatment, but for some people, good eyesight can be considered an unaffordable luxury. Almost one billion people in the world have no access to glasses, meaning that many people are unable to read, learn, study and carry out their daily activities as effectively as they would if they were provided with a sufficient prescription. When you buy one of these pairs of sunglasses, you not only protect your eyes from the damaging sun’s rays with 100% UV protection, but you also contribute to a good cause, potentially restoring the sight of someone in need.

Here are 6 of the most humanitarian brands, offering unique and fashionable eyewear.

1. Tommy Hilfiger. Despite being a well-known designer brand, Tommy Hilfiger is down-to-earth when it comes to charity. The sunglasses ‘promise collection’ benefits people in Ruhira in Uganda by providing free eye check-ups and corrective lenses to those who need them. These frames showcase African styling with colourful, tribal-inspired prints on the sunglasses arms.

2. Westward Leaning sunglasses appear to be just average, stylish frames. However, on the arms of each pair is an inlaid coloured panel celebrating a different social cause. The glasses all feature a black, wayfarer style frame with an attractive arm plaque. The designs range from the ‘Children of California’ subtle wooden square ($10 to ‘Teach for America’ for every pair sold), to rainbow ribbon threaded through the arm in support of gay rights organisations. In addition, every pair sold raises $10 for non profit charities such as Love Thy Neighbor Mexico. This charity seeks to raise awareness about the link between the high drugs demand in the US with the drug wars in Mexico, using the unconventional tools of social media and art installations.

3. TOMS sunglasses range marks part of the brand’s charity campaign, ‘Summer of Sight’ in which they aim to help restore the sight of 100,000 people around the world. For every pair purchased, TOMS will provide essential medical treatment, prescription glasses or surgery needed to restore vision. The glasses appear to be regular sunglasses with a dark, wayfarer frame, but buying a pair of these will help someone in need.

4. WarbyParker promises to donate one pair of prescription glasses to someone in the developing world for every pair bought. The prescription glasses donated are tailored to the needs of the local communities and can help provide the dignity, independence and confidence of clear vision. The sunglasses range is stylish and cool, with an emphasis on bold frames in tortoiseshell, red, and other bright colours, forming part of a popular brand that promised to do good in the world.

5. Solo is a San Diego glasses range which is dedicated to a charitable cause. For every pair sold, Solo promises to donate a pair of prescription glasses to someone in need and to fund part of an eye surgery for two people. The glasses are cool and innovative, featuring dark bamboo arms and bright plastic lens frames, for a quirky contrast. And with one simple purchase, every customer can help save the sight of someone in need.

6. Proof focuses on creating unique aviator-style frames, whilst supporting a charitable cause. For every pair sold, Proof promises to help those who cannot afford the treatment they need in India, by providing sight-saving cataract surgeries. When choosing your pair of sunglasses, you are even given the option of creating different combinations of wood shade, stain, lens colour and frame shape.

So if you’re feeling charitable, consider investing in a pair of super stylish, innovative frames, whilst benefiting those in need. You can wear a unique pair of frames; whilst someone across the globe can regain their sight... it’s a win-win situation.

There have been many studies recently that strive to determine the root cause and psychology behind the act of charitable giving. People's attitudes towards altruism and their perceived social responsibility are affected so many different environmental and emotional factors, it's often difficult to ascertain their precise reasoning. But, thanks to a series of studies published by the Journal Of Experimental Social Psychology, we're able to get an insight into the complex motivations people have when engaging in a philanthropic or charitable act. However, it's not as common sense-based as you'd think. Here are three surprising facts discovered through the course of these studies:

More people pay more and produce a greater profit when they're operating under a 'Pay What You Want' scheme

According to a field study conducted in 2010 and co-authored by Professor Leif Nelson at the Haas School of Business, UC Berkeley, more profit per unit is produced if people are allowed to decide how much they want to pay for goods or services. The study inolved presenting 28,224 participants with a picture postcard that cost a pre-determined $12.95. Despite being told a significant portion of the product would go to a charity, only a few people actually purchased the item, yielding a tiny profit of just 6 cents per visitor. However, when the postcard was sold under a pay-as-you-can method, although the average price paid was considerably lower (an average of $5.33 per person), the amount of people who participated meant that the profit margin was nearly twenty cents to the charity. Interestingly, when people were told that none of the proceeds would go to charity,the amount they chose to pay decreased dramatically. So it appears that a combination of asserting a social responsibility but also giving the donor complete autonomy, it produces the greatest amount of profit and all parties benefit.

People From Lower Incomes Are More Generous Than People With High Incomes

In the findings of a paper entitled “Having Less, Giving More: The Influence of Social Class on Prosocial Behavior” written by a scientific team operating out of University of Toronto and UC Berkeley, it was discovered that people who perceived themselves as of a 'lower class status' were persistently more altruistic in terms of their dealing with charitable giving and compassionate acts pertaining to other volunteers then those who perceived themselves as of a 'higher class status.' This is perhaps not so surprising but what is interesting is that the altruism that both parties displayed was directly linked to the concept of compassion and the participants ability to feel concern for their fellow man. When the higher class participants were experimentally induced to feel compassion by watching a film on child poverty, their prosocial behaviour changed and their actions and decisions fell in line with the lower class participants' actions.

Literally Being on Higher Ground Encourages More Enthusiastic Giving

Occasionally, there are metaphors that are generally accepted across a variety of different cultures and the notion of being 'on higher ground' being associated with a generosity of spirit is one of them. In a series of fascinating studies conducted by a group of social scientists at the Universities of North Carolina and Michigan, it was discovered that in a survey of shoppers who were offered the chance to donate to the Salvation Army, that the people who had just disembarked the upwards escalator donated in significantly larger quantities than those who had travelled on the downward escalator. In another study, participants were offered the chance to pour as much as they wanted of an unpleasantly potent hot sauce into a cup who another volunteer to drink. Participants who were onstage (the upper level) persistently allocated a smaller quantity of sauce then the participants in the orchestra (at a much lower elevation). This demonstrated that the more physically elevated the volunteer, the more likely they were to exhibit compassion for their fellow man. Perhaps there is something to Feng Shui after all!

Raising cash for charity is a great thing to do and the more funny your method of doing it the more likely you are to gather oodles of moola! What I've created below are some simple variations on regular methods of fund raising to increase the funny factor and hopefully your bank. Which means everyone is a winner!

A Race...

OK, not the most inventive, but it's how you pitch it. And what you race. Basically everyone likes a flutter. So embrace this and get people gambling. What better way to soften the blow of incurred losses, by knowing your cash is heading to charity rather than the pocket of a bookmaker. So what are you going to race? Snails are good, but that takes time. Cats are awkward to control. Woodlice might work. Be inventive. Ensure that any animals involved are well treated and everyone will have an ace time earning stacks o' green for a good cause. You could opt for a video option too. Footage of camel racing from the Middle East is all over the net. Just make sure you don't give away the results...

Karaoke...

Karaoke is fun. Regardless of what anyone says about it, they probably secretly love it. We all get our sing-a-long on in the shower and a bit of a duet going while dusting. Doing this for charity might be the just the thing to quash those concerns about self-consciousness. American Idol in your back yard is a possibility! But how to make it more funny? Add in foreign versions. Obviously doing this for an entire evening might drag a little, but the odd one is always going to create a laugh. Plus anyone taking it on should be given twice the cash for their efforts. And that's going to boost the funds no end!

Theme Night...

A theme night relies on its theme unsurprisingly. Obviously if it is well chosen hilarity will ensue. I attended an event that was French themed and the costumes were amazing, fine and regal, think the court of Marie Antoinette. The food and drink matched and the evening was truly spectacular, apart from one attendee, who took the French theme in a more irreverent manner. He arrived on a bicycle wearing a striped shirt and beret with a string of onions around his neck and a baguette under his arm. Very, very funny. Maybe try videogame characters or other good choices are 80s or 70s, or perhaps characters from movies, so action heroes or Star Wars characters. It's really up to you.

If you choose any of these good luck and remember to go wild. While your first priority is to raise a significant sum of money it's closely followed by having fun. Besides if people are enjoying themselves they are far more likely to loosen their grip on their funds...

Always on the lookout for humorous ideas, Andrew Simm can often be found chuckling over funny gifts at Find Me A Gift, the gift ideas people.